The water bill that isn't a water bill

Two weeks ago I sat in the back row of a MUD board meeting in north Pasadena where exactly four residents showed up. The board approved a $1.4M bond extension in eleven minutes. Nobody asked a question. The chair said the words "in the best interest of the district" and everyone nodded and we all went home.

I keep thinking about that meeting. Not because anything illegal happened — it didn't — but because the system worked exactly the way it's supposed to work, and the result is that the people paying the bill have no idea they're paying it.

This week's investigation is Part 5 of the Hidden Levy series. We're inside the MUD now. If you've never heard the term, that's the point.

What your local government is doing this week

Week of May 25 – 31

Worth driving for · Worth knowing

Two months open and already running a 30-minute wait on Fridays. Wood-fired everything. The brisket taco is the brisket taco, but the pork shoulder by weight is the better order.

Biscuit was surrendered when his owner went into assisted living. He spent two days at the shelter looking confused and has since become the staff favorite. Knows sit, down, and the sound of a treat bag from across the building. House-trained, leash-trained, and finished with the puppy phase by approximately seven years.

What we're reading this week

The kids are doing American history this term, which means I'm doing American history this term. We're on the Articles of Confederation and the boys are personally offended by Shays' Rebellion. Good. That's the correct reaction.

Four newsletters for the price of one beer.

TAAL is free and will stay free. The Remnant is $5 a month — and since this lands in your inbox every Sunday, that's four newsletters for the price of one beer. It's where I post mid-week, where the archive lives, and where contributors get tagged in.

If a recent issue saved you a trip, told you something you didn't know, or got you to a meeting that mattered — buy me a beer.